Film and Fiction Suggestions from the Staff

You may have noticed that our libraries were closed this morning for staff training. As a part of our staff training, we shared some of our favorite books, movies, authors, actors, in many different categories. It was a fun, fast event, full of memories and laughter. I’m sure that I missed many great suggestions, but you can enjoy these, or any ask any one of us our favorites next time you are in the library.

The first one that we discussed was: Favorite Childhood Book. This is a great icebreaker topic. Everyone has one, and often the favorite of one person would evoke fond memories in another person. Here’s our list:

• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl (It’s a movie, too!)
• The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain
• Anything by Shel Silverstein – especially The Giving Tree
• War of the Worlds
• The Little House on the Prairie books by Laura Ingalls Wilder (start with Little House in the Big Woods)
• Tawny Scrawny Lion
• The BFG (It’s a brand new movie!)
• Alice in Wonderland
• Nancy Drew Series
• Boxcar Children Series
• Good Night Moon

How can you look at a list like this without childhood memories?!

There are just some authors and actors who can do no wrong. We’d follow them over a cliff. If you have one of these actors or authors in your life, you know what I’m talking about – you don’t care what the premise of the movie or book is you are going to see it, and probably on the day it comes out. This was a fun one to talk about, even if some of our answers were fairly predictable.

• Meryl Streep
• George Clooney
• Brad Pitt
• Harrison Ford
• Kevin Spacey
• Tom Hanks
• Alice Hoffman
• K. Rowling

Scariest movie we’ve ever seen:

• Jaws
• Aliens
• Psycho
• The Exorcist
• The Wizard of Oz
• Rosemary’s Baby
• The Conjuring
• Wait Until Dark
• The Blair Witch Project

Funniest Movie:

• The Moneypit
• Groundhog Day
• Pink Panther
• Marx Brothers
• Father of the Bride
  • Or anything Steve Martin
• Meet the Fockers
• Caddyshack
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding
• Blazing Saddles

Best thing we’ve read or seen in 2016:

• Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
• Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: and Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughy
• These is my Words by Nancy Turner
• Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman
• Little Prince (new on Netflix)
• Hamilton
• When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
• Weiner
• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
• Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin
• The Drone Eats with Me by Atef Abu Saif
• The House at the Edge of Night by Catherine Banner
• Florence Foster Jenkins (coming soon!)
• Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

We had lots of fun training and learning more great suggestions. What are some of yours?